The L is about to get some new, non-formstone-faced neighbors.

In the midst of yesterday's frenzy of Domino Sugar Refinery-themed press coverage, squished L train riders could be forgiven for asking: how much more development can Williamsburg handle? With only two tracks in a largely quad-tracked system, the L is not as well-endowed as some lines—so how much more Williamsburg can the L really take?

As it turns out, quite a bit.

The L recently underwent an upgrade to its signaling system, with the MTA installing something known as communications-based train control, or CBTC. The installation was riddled with issues, as any nighttime L rider can attest to, but now that it's done, the line's maximum rush hour capacity is up to 26 trains per hour. Not the highest-capacity tracks in the system—the express tracks on the Lexington Avenue line are capable of 27—but significantly more than the 19 trains per hour that currently run during the morning peak, or about one every three minutes. (And this is nowhere near the theoretical maximum capacity of a two-track system—some lines in the Moscow Metro do a whopping 40 trains per hour during rush hour.)

The maximum capacity of 26 trains per hour on the L, a 38 percent increase over current peak service, would require some upgrades, but nothing on the scale of the CBTC installation and debugging that drove L riders crazy for years.

For one, the MTA would need more rolling stock—that is, more trains. The MTA already has an order in for 300 brand new R179s, as the next model will be called, and the 2015-19 capital plan will include an order for an even newer model, the R211. (And while American subways have been reluctant to embrace them, there's always the possibility of buying new articulated train sets, which can hold more people without having to lengthen platforms.)

"And when we get up to a point where we run 22 trains per hour," MTA spokesman Kevin Ortiz told The Observer, "then there's the issue of traction power that we need to address." He couldn't cite a concrete cost, but said that it would be a "minor fix."

And that's just for peak periods, which have the highest ridership and tightest capacity constraints. But outside of rush hour, the subway has a virtually unlimited supply of excess track and train capacity. Aside from periods when the tracks need to be worked on, the MTA should have no problem keeping up with the L's much-touted night and weekend ridership.

Mr. Ortiz also emphasized that these capacity issues are much further down the line than Two Trees' Domino project. The L's excess capacity is measured in the tens of thousands of riders per day, while Jed Walentas is only looking to add 2,284 new apartments to the waterfront—apartments that will be as close to the Marcy Avenue stop on the J/M/Z as they are to the Bedford Avenue L.

As for Mr. Walentas's planned office space, it will be essentially "free" from a transit capacity point of view. Workers coming in via Manhattan will have roomy reverse-peak trains all to themselves, and workers arriving from farther out on the L will disembark at Bedford Avenue, before the most congested segment between there and Union Square.

Two Trees also plans to incorporate a new ferry landing at the southern end of their site. But the ferries, though pleasant, are little more than a rounding error compared to New York City's subways. Luckily for Williamsburg (and its developers), there's plenty of train capacity left before people have to take to the water.

This is why you never sleep on a subway going through the aurora borealis. (YouTube)

TGIF, right? Sometimes you need to just take a giant nap on the floor of the subway because it's late at night and apparently everyone else is asleep as well. OR: Another possibility is that the sleeping passengers were the only ones left after the L train went through the aurora borealis, which everyone knows from The Langoliers has the nasty side effect of erasing anyone who happens to be awake during impact.

We'll withhold judgement until Improv Everywhere releases a video from the cave headquarters and claim sresponsibility for the snooze attack.

But just to be on the safe side, we'd advise these sleepyheads to wake up and start running. Avoid Balki at all costs. You know, normal stuff.

The first L train. (Joe Lhota/Twitter)

Joe Lhota just made it official on Twitter. There's really nothing more to say. There will be a lot of crying into beers in North Brooklyn tonight—tears of joy, of course!—as almost a week without L train service comes to an end. How long before the cheering ends and the crowded misery resumes?

Update:The tunnel was flooded with some 15 feet of water along its 3,400-foot length under the East River, according to a release from the MTA. The agency had said before that this was the most seriously flooded line, owing to its main vent being right on the shore of the East River in Williamsburg. Starting over the weekend, crews were furiously pumping out the tunnel, working 24-hours a day, and still, it was not until yesterday that the work was complete.

It appears that any major announcements about subway restoration have come to an end. The N line to Coney from 59th Street in Sunset Park and the A line to the Rockaways currently have indeterminate reopening horizons, following serious damage to those above-ground lines. South Ferry is also closed, limiting service on the No. 1 and R trains downtown.

“We continue to progress toward the complete restoration of service and will continue to do so incrementally, but only when it’s safe and doesn’t overcharge the system,” Mr. Lhota said in the release. “However, much work remains to restore service in the Rockaways and along the Sea Beach Line in Brooklyn, which were devastated by Hurricane Sandy

Enough already with the North Brooklyn bellyaching!

That seems to be the message of the MTA, which restored G trains service earlier this morning. Everyone is eagerly awaiting the resumption of the L train between Eighth Avenue and Broadway Junction, everyone meaning the unwashed masses of the city's hipsters. The L line, which was pumped out yesterday, had the worst flooding of any subway tunnel, according to the MTA,   now, to prove just how tirelessly the agency is working to get the L back up and running, here's a video to show the work going on.

Train drain on the L-line. (MTA/Fickr)

Update, 11/6 11:42 a.m.: The MTA just announced that the L-train tube under 14th Street has been pumped out and "damage is currently being assessed."

Original post: Since we have become your defacto North Brooklyn subway depot—just take a look at the Popular Stories box right now—here is the latest from those skinny-pants filled lines. According to the MTA's evening service advisory, the Newtown Creek tunnel on the G-train has been pumped out while pumping work remains for the L.

As we previously reported, no tunnel saw more flooding than the L, which is among the reasons the MTA left it until the end of its recovery operations to pump out, because the more water, the longer it takes. Among the reasons the 4/5/6 and 2/3 were up and running so quickly is they needed minimal pumping. They also carry more people, making them, arguably a greater priority. Just don't tell that to the people living in North Brooklyn.

Meanwhile, the G-train may be clear of water, but signals still need to be repaired from what rushed in, which was salt water, remember, and thus more severe. Once repaired, the signals need to be tested. It does not appear that there will be G service tomorrow morning as a result, but the MTA has surprised us before, so keep those fingers cross.

In the meantime, remember, the B43 gets you pretty darn close to the bridge into Queens, and thus the No. 7 train to Midtown, so don't get stuck relying on the B62 to get you to work tomorrow. The MTA did say it will be running extra B62 buses to compensate for the absent subway service, as well.

The agency also reiterated the importance of getting these lines up and running again. "The top subway priority is now restoring service on the G and L trains through northwest Brooklyn, where alternate service on the J and M trains was extremely crowded," the statement read.

Meanwhile, service has expanded on the A/C lines, with the A-train running once again to 207th Street in Inwood, the last stop on the line. The C-train will start running to 168th Street in Harlem once again as a result. The B-line will also begin running, from Bedford Park in the Bronx all the way down to Kings Highway in Brooklyn, though neither that or the Q yet reaches Coney Island, which was hard-hit by the storm.

The MTA is also trying to figure out how to increase 1-train service through signal adjustments in order to allow for more riders on the West Side, where there was considerable crowding on the Seventh Avenue line during this morning's commute.

The line for the B62, about the only G-train life line. (Heidi Metcalfe/Twitter)

The people of North Brooklyn can be an entitled bunch (as a local, this reporter can personally testify to this). After all, the lights, even the Internet stayed on through most of the storm, and property damage was minimal, even for those condos cum punching bags on the waterfront. Still, standing outside in the freezing cold while one packed B62 after another blows by your stop is not a very comforting feeling. Forget getting to work, what about the hypothermia concerns the mayor has been preaching?

But fear not, now that the MTA has gotten to all the other subway lines—which to be totally fair had less flooding and/or carried more riders into the city—the L and the G are now its primary recovery focus, according to MTA spokesman Adam Lisberg.

"The MTA is very much aware of the difficult commute for our customers who usually take the G and L trains, as well as the crowding at the Marcy Avenue station," Mr. Lisberg said in an email. "Getting the G and L running again is our highest priority, and crews are working around the clock on both."

Part of the reason it may still be a few days before service returns is because the damage in the flooded lines remains unknown. "Pumping the water from those flooded tunnels is only the first step," Mr. Lisberg said. "Signals must be fixed or replaced and then tested, among other restorations, before we can safely start service again. We know this is an inconvenience for our customers in the affected neighborhoods, and the entire agency is focused on getting those lines running again."

He also said  that the logistics of setting up shuttles for these lines is complicated even when the system is not hamstrung as it currently is, and it would only carry a fraction of the passengers the trains could. And by the time the shuttle is up and running, the trains could be back in some capacity, so better to wait for that, though the agency continues to explore all options to restore service as quickly as possible.

For those in Greenpoint and Williamsburg, The Observer has hit upon at least one possible route into Manhattan that bypasses the B62, which is currently suffering from long lines and overcrowding. Take the B43 to the last stop at Box Street, walk over the Pulaski Bridge, and catch the No. 7 at Vernon/Jackson. You may have to wade through crowds there, too, but at least you'll be inside.

Take me to your conductor!

The future is here and it's not as cool as you thought it would be. In fact, it's very much like the past, just with more delays. We are talking of course, about the fantastically named 'RoboTrain' next-gen subway system.

The only current 'RoboTrain' in the city is the hipster-clogged L train, which the MTA has been tweaking for so many years, we're no longer sure which came first, RoboCop or RoboTrain.

The L train has had a rough time of it recently and the Daily News reports that the latest RoboTrain tests have further stoked the anger toward our would-be transportation machine overlords. The latest tests are planned for this Tuesday  and Wednesday, as well as the same days the following week, January 31 and February 1. We wouldn't hold our breath on a possible test extension, either.

For the next two weeks, straphangers who go through Broadway Junction will have to make a transfer, and for those getting on or off between Broadway to Canarsie, there will be a 24 minute wait between trains. Not much longer than the typical L wait, but yeah, still very annoying.

According to MTA data, one in four delays on the L in 2011 were due to RoboTrain testing. It's not all bad news though for riders of the line, as two more L trains are scheduled to come on board in the summer, which will shorten waiting times.

The M.T.A. is adamant that the RoboTrain will eventually be a success, allowing for the trains to run closer together and thus allowing for more trains, shorter waits and faster commutes.

While the RoboTrain is specially fitted to be completely computer-operated, it retains the use of a motorman and conductor—because the labor agreement demands it but also just in case it should get any HAL-esque ideas and needs to be overridden. This however, begs the all important question: If it still needs a conductor, whats the point?

sduffy@observer.com

(source: reader iPhone)

An evangelizing member of the white supremicist group the National Alliance has apparently made his or her way from Hillsboro, West Virginia all the way to the L train.

"STOP IMMIGRATION!" reads the black-on-yellow sticker spotted by a reader this morning. "Non-Whites are turning America into a Third World slum. They come for welfare or take our jobs. They bring crime. They are messy, disruptive, noisy and multiply rapidly. Let's send them home now!"

Have any readers noticed stickers, fliers or literature? Does this signal rising racial tension on the often pale-faced shuttle?

The National Alliance provided a phone number on the stickers, which we dialed to find out whether there were any cocktail parties coming up in New York. "Thank you for calling the National Alliance," a woman's voice intoned. "America's foremost organization working for the longterm interests of men and women of European descent."

Among the National Alliance's concerns:

• the government makes only a transparent pretense to protect America's borders
• the Jewish monopoloy of our mass media
• quotas, multiculturalism and political correctness in schools and workplaces

"We favor a free, strong, proud White America," the recording says. "If you share some of our concerns, then you should learn more about what the National Alliance is doing." The Observer left a message at the beep.

The Alliance was founded by neo-Nazi William Pierce in 1974. From Wikipedia:

Before the death of Pierce, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation called the Alliance the best-financed and best-organized white nationalist organization of its kind in the United States. Membership in 2002 was estimated at 2,500 with an income of $1 million annually.^[14] According to the SPLC, paid membership has declined to fewer than 800 and the paid staff was down to only 10 people as of 2006.^[15] The infighting since the death of the founder Pierce apparently has greatly weakened the organization.

In 2002, the organization ran a white power record label called Resistance Records and ran "Resistance Radio", a now defunct web radio station that streamed white power rock music across the Internet 24 hours a day. It also has a radio show, American Dissident Voices, heard on shortwave and streaming audio on the Internet. This show started in 1992 and has been on every week since. At one point in the mid-1990s there were 22 radio stations, AM and FM, which carried the program, but most of these radio stations dropped these programs.

The organization is not on Twitter.

The website Animal NY posted this video of someone caught in the patriotic fervor last night who tried to engage his fellow L-train passengers in the spirited chanting of "U-S-A! U-S-A!" 

"Bin Laden's dead, anybody give a shit?" the man asks. "You're welcome to the military and everyone who protects you while you sleep."

The closest thing to a response he receives, as best we can tell, is the ol' one-fingered salute.

"The L ranked highest because it performs best in the system on two measures—regularity of service and announcements—and well above average on three other measures: frequency of scheduled service, delays caused by mechanical breakdowns and the percentage of dirty cars," a statement released today by Straphangers said.

"The line did not get a higher rating because it performed well below average on: a chance of getting a seat during rush hour."

The 7 line came in second place with above average ratings in all categories except for the percentage of dirty cars and adequate announcements.

The Q train rounded out the top three, followed by last year's top-rated line, the 1 and then the 6. The J/Z, 5, 2, 3, and 4 also ranked in the top 10.

At the bottom of the list is the W, which ranked below average in all measures of service except for the chance of getting a seat during rush hour. So basically, its such a bad train that no one rides it.

Overall, the state of the subway is not very good, according to the report's findings.

“Riders on the L and 7 are benefiting from more independent managers and more resources, but the subway system as a whole performs weakly,” said Gene Russianoff, the Straphangers Campaign's senior attorney, in a statement. “Most troubling is the widespread increase in subway car breakdowns – on 17 of the 22 subway lines – which cause delays and inconvenience for hundreds of thousands of riders.”